Study of muscle contraction induced by electrical pulse stimulation and nitric oxide in C2C12 myotube cells

[Purpose] This study aimed to examine the independent effect of electrical pulse stimulation( EPS) and nitric oxide(NO) on muscle contraction and their synergistic or combined effect on contraction phenomenon using C2C12 mouse skeletal muscle cells. [Methods] Some differentiated C2C12 myotube cells were untreated (control). Other cells did not receive EPS and did receive 0.5, 1.0, or 2.0 mM of the NO donor, S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP; -E/S0.5, -E/S1.0, and -E/S2.0, respectively). For the EPS treatments (0.3 V/mm, 1.0 Hz, and 4.0 ms), differentiated C2C12 myotube cells received only EPS or both EPS and the SNAPtreatments at the same concentrations (+E/-S, +E/S0.5, +E/ S1.0, and +E/S2.0, respectively). All samples were then cultured for 4 days. [Results] Differentiated C2C12 cellswere stimulated by the EPS, NO, and EPS+NO treatments. The cell length of the +E/S2.0 Group after the 4-day culture (84.2±13.2㎛) was the shortest of all the groups. The expressions of AMPK, JNK, Akt, eNOS, GLUT4, and PGC1α proteins were noticeably dominant. The results indicated synergistic effect on muscle contraction of simultaneously applied EPS and SNAP. [Conclusion] Motor skills were significantly improved when exercise was accompanied by the intake of NO precursor and/or NO, compared to that upon their independent application or treatment.